


After All

by xIrelandx (orphan_account)



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: F/M, Foul Language, Friendship, Soul's stalker, inaccurate facts about the united states, snipe hunts, wild goose chases
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-07-23
Updated: 2012-07-23
Packaged: 2017-11-10 14:06:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/467145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/xIrelandx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maka goes missing and Soul is drug on a wild goose chase. Meanwhile, their friends and family are trying to figure out what the Hell is really going on when "Soul" starts acting funny. SoMa and others. NOT A DEATHFIC despite first chapter.</p><p>Re-Posting this from Fanfic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Step backwards. Slam the shaft into the roof tiles. Swing around on it. Hunker down.

"Would you shut up? God, I don't even know where you get these kinds of ideas."

Soul reflected his image in the blade. For the first time in three years, Soul let drool foam at the corner of his mouth and drip down. He'd become more mannered over the years, adjusting to his own image of cool. He hated to admit it, but he was almost turning out like his brother Wes. Almost.

"You were _staring_ right at her! Oogling, really."

"I was not 'oogling'. She's been stalking for a long time now. I thought maybe staring her down would make her go the Hell away."

"Yes, and I'm sure her _boobs_ were _terrified_."

"God! What _boobs_? And why were _you_ staring?"

"I was trying to figure out what the Hell was so interesting that you were staring at!"

They'd gotten used to fighting people on rooftops. One foot directly behind the other. Keep Scythe swipes balanced.

"You are so paranoid."

"How am I being paranoid!"

"I'm not the least bit interested in that girl and you know that!"

"How the Hell would I know that? She's prettier than me!"

Swipe right over the witch's head.

"She's stronger than me!"

Swipe right under the witch's feet.

"She's probably better suited for you than I am!"

Attempt to swipe right down on the witch. Horrible miss. And Maka fell, attempting to dig Soul into the siding of the house they were inadvertently tearing apart. But it was too hot outside, her gloves too slippery and she let go of Soul.

" _Fuck_." Soul half-transformed, grabbing onto Maka's hand. "What the Hell is this all about, Maka?"

Maka pulled up and wrapped an arm around Soul's back. " _Nothing_." Soul not only knew it was a lie, but felt in his gut that something very horrible was about to happen. She was trying to snap at him, but her voice was half-screaming. That wasn't the voice of anger. That was the voice of terror.

"Come on, Maka." He awkwardly wrapped a foot around her legs, trying to get a better hold on her. She let go of his hand to reach up. "Trust me, Maka." He whispered. "I know I told Medusa things I didn't tell you, and that was wrong…I didn't want to worry you…"

Maka paused in mid-climb, looking down at Soul. She leaned close to his ear. "I don't want to lose you…to someone better than me."

"Maka, that's not gonna – there is no one –" Soul didn't know what he could possibly tell her to make her understand. He blushed furiously, wishing they either never needed to have this conversation, or were having it anywhere other than where they were right then.

But Maka seemed to understand. She smiled, closed her eyes, and leaned down. Her forehead bumped his, and Soul could feel his heart beating a million times an hour. He'd never been kissed before – not that he'd ever admit as much. But as she leaned down closer, her chest pressed against his, he could feel that her heart was beating just as quickly, if not faster.

He should have known. He should have known _then_ what was going to happen.

The witch snarled, surprising them from the rooftop behind where they had been hanging. Soul didn't have any time to react. Maka didn't have any room to react. The witch had six very sharp blades that cut through Maka's back, to her chest, pouring blood out her mouth, making her eyes go blank, leaving Soul on the rooftop in a state of shock and horror, and dragging Maka along with her murderer.


	2. Chapter 2

Soul refused to acknowledge the funeral processions. Mostly it was because he refused to believe that Maka was dead.

People kept offering him their condolences. Black*Star even went so far as to put his hand 'comfortingly' on Soul's shoulder and saying "Dude, I'm sorry". Soul went so far as to punch him for the effort. Black*Star's normally vibrant temper wasn't on par that day. He just watched Soul walk away, commenting to Tsubaki that he just "needed time."

X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – x – x – X- x – x x- x – x x- x – X

Maka's mother and Soul's parents arrived that Thursday. Maka's mother fully intended to take all of Maka's stuff back with her. The scene was beyond not pretty.

Kami Albarn looked almost exactly like Maka. She was much smaller than Spirit, but curvier than Maka. Soul guessed that was just from having been a mother. He also guessed that her arriving much earlier than Soul had planned on getting up (6:30 AM, to be precise), and Soul had never intended to get up again. It had only been three days since Maka's disappearance and he was already feeling more miserable than he had in his entire life.

Soul didn't even bother to say hello or invite Kami in. He didn't bother to ask her name. He just looked at her.

So she began. "Hello, I'm Kami Albarn. I believe you're her partner, Soul 'Eater' Evans?"

Soul didn't respond.

"Look, I came here to pick up her things-"

Soul slammed the door in her face. But of course, Kami Albarn was prepared for such things. She kicked to door down and looked around the small apartment, wondering how her daughter ever lived her, especially with a boy.

"So…" she patted her thighs lightly, at a loss for what to say.

"How the Hell did you get my information?"

"Huh?"

"My name is Soul Eater. No one ever calls me Evans. No one is _allowed_ to call me Evans. I dropped that name."

"I…I met your parents at the airport." Soul's hands clenched into fists. "They seem very lovely. Very –"

"Fake." He turned and leaned casually against the wall, hands in his pockets. He glared at Kami's feet. "Why are you here?"

"I'm Maka's mother. I came to pick up her things."

"No."

She straightened up, baring her teeth. Soul snorted. _Is this supposed to be impressive? Maka can do much better._ "Excuse me, young man, but I am Maka's mother. I have custody of her. You really have no rights –"

"I am her _partner_. I have thrown myself in front of her, protecting her from death at least three times –"

"And you failed to do so!"

"You have done _nothing_ for her!" Soul and Kami were now standing so closes that their noses were touching. Soul's family walked into the background, but Soul was too preoccupied to notice. "You have custody of her, yet you barely even act like a parent! In the four years I have been partners with her you've sent her _one_ postcard. God, even Spirit, who's a complete fuck-up, is a better parent than you!" If Kami was a dog, her hackles would have been up. She was literally growling, her hair seemed to stand on end. Soul couldn't tell if it really was or not. "Oh, I'm so _fucking_ scared of you. _I_ can turn into a _fucking blade_."

"Are you threatening me?"

"No! I'm reminding you of the fact that your daughter and I were 14 when she made me a Death Scythe. How the _fuck_ old were you again?"

"Don't you _dare_ talk to me like that again!" She raised her hand above her head, ready to strike Soul. Soul grabbed her hand, twisting it behind her back and shoving her against the wall.

"Maka," he hissed at her. "Is the _only_ person who is allowed to hit me. Do you understand? Good. Now get the _fuck_ outta my apartment."

He kicked Kami out of his apartment and turned to greet his family in kind.

X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X x- x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x- X – X

Soul had a horrifying nightmare that night. He dreamed that Maka had been killed years ago, by Crona's attack. She had protected him, not the other way around. And in his dream, the witch was throwing her knives through his back, and as he bled to death, the image of Maka's bloody and lifeless body so imprinted itself that he couldn't see anything else.

Soul woke up cold, sweating, and shaking, but he didn't cry. He couldn't remember the last time he cried, or if he'd ever cried. He ambled out into the hallway, hand supporting himself on the wall. He slid down, putting his head between his legs and his hands behind his heads. He meditated all his thoughts into his soul, and found himself in his soul room. He ignored the demon, ignored the record player, ignored the colours and the piano and the madness surrounding him. Everything turned black. He breathed in and out, trying to sense anything like Maka's soul. If he could sense her soul, there was no way she was dead.

And now, he felt like crying.

No, he was crying. Tears were slipping down her face. They were also cold and wet, but colder and more uncomfortable than his sweat. He couldn't feel, sense, see, hear smell…

And then he felt a spark. He sat up, gasping for breath, barely able to hold on to his soul sense. A soft, yellow glow was leading him forward. He attempted to swim in its direction. He knew for a fact that it was Maka. Everything about it was just her – the way it glowed in the dark reminded Soul of her smiling. Although he wasn't sure why she would be smiling.

"Oh, god, quit it, that tickles!" So now he could hear her voice, but he couldn't see her.

"Maka! MAKA!" Soul tried to keep swimming toward her, only to realize that he wasn't really moving forwards at all. _What the Hell?_

"I'm sorry, Soul, but I'm not that easy to beat. You won't find her that easily."

"What the fuck? Who are you?"

"Oh, your desperation is touching, but no. I'm not telling you. You're going to have to figure it out."

"Using what clues?"

"Hm. Cross country chase, my darling? Seems just fine to me. Glad you agree!"

"Glad I agree? I didn't agree to anything! Wait – where are you going?"

x- x – X – x – X – x-x X- xX – xx- X –x x- x x- x X- x -x X- x X – x – X – x – X – X – x

Soul packed some of his things – all of the money he could find, some clothing, and a hair ribbon of Maka's, which he found on her dresser while cleaning up her things. He wrapped it around his wrist to remind him of why he was doing something so insane. He packed her belongings into a large box and hid it in a closet, because there was no way in Hell he was giving any of it to her mother.

He threw his hood up and started toward the door.

"You're going to try and find her, aren't you?" Blair was standing behind him in a nightshirt. "I'm her cat. I can sense her soul. It's still out there." Blair kissed his forehead softly. "Don't worry. I'll cover for you."


	3. Chapter 3

"Alrighty!" Blair's finger made circles in the air. "So…first, let's get rid of these boobs!" She snapped her fingers and became completely flat. "Aw, now I know how Maka feels. Next, I gotta be a lot shorter." She closed her eyes and snapped her fingers again. "Oh, geez, this is so weird. My eyes are too big." Snap. "And purple." Snap. "There we go…hm…his hair is spiky and white." She sighed lovingly at her hair. "Goodbye for now!"

She looked at herself in the mirror. She didn't need to do anything to her skin colour ("Who would be looking that closely anyway?", she wondered), but she couldn't help thinking that there was something important she was forgetting.

X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X

Soul absolutely detested cold weather. It kept him from concentrating on anything, and concentration was what he needed. Especially since he had absolutely no idea what he was doing.

"You sure this is where you wanna be, son?" The guy who boated Soul out to Alaska was much like the terrain – it looked cold, felt cold, and was cold. You could tell from looking that the guy was gruff and bitter from having lost something important – like a girl. Soul could appreciate the lack in personality. If the guy had been cheery, Soul might have hit him.

"Yeah." Soul would have added a "Whatever", but that might have lead to questioning and therefore more conversation.

Twenty minutes later, Soul was standing in the snow, in the exact same position as he was on the boat: arms crossed, head down, scowl showing off his sharp teeth. "Well what do I do now…" He sat down in the snow, and started digging. He didn't know why. He tried to convince himself that he wasn't panicking. He stopped, resting his forehead on the snow. "I don't know…what I'm supposed to do." He closed his eyes, hoping to find his soul's room again. It just wouldn't come to him.

He started drawing in the snow. A round face, narrowed eyes, and ponytails. "I wish I knew where to start looking…I just need a clue." He blew out a breath, tossing his bangs about.

"You could start by looking up, young man" Soul did look up. "Starting off with a negative attitude is never good! As long as you put your mind to a task, you can accomplish anything! Always remember that."

"I don't want your stupid lessons, I want my partner back!"

"Not very polite, are we?"

"Why should I be? Everyone else thinks she's dead!"

"Good, then."

"Good? How is that _good?_ What exactly are you aiming for?"

"What is the first colour one notices upon walking into a room?"

" _What?_ "

"What is the first colour –"

"I know what you said, but what?"

"Answer the question."

"Uh…" _Hey, boy. In here. Quick._ Soul appeared inside his room. _Now, what was the first thing that you noticed?_ "The construction sign." _And the colour is?_

"YELLOW!"

"Correct! And now, for a personal question: What is the colour of your partner's eyes?"

"Don't you mean what are the colour of her eyes?" he grumbled. "They're green."

"Nice! Now here is your consolation prize. See you elsewhere!"

Soul tried to run over to where the disembodied voice had been, but his feet decided on trudging. He found Maka's right white glove in his hand. "This has got to be the most unhelpful thing I have ever received in my life."


	4. Chapter 4

Soul sat with his shoulder hunched against the cold window of the bus, trying hard not to touch anybody else. He was in a bad enough mood as it was, and any extra, unnecessary human contact might cause him to go berserk and starting taking hostages.

After a nine hour, fifteen minute flight from Alaska to New York and another four hours, four minutes on a drive from New York to Washington DC, Soul was crabby and more than a little antsy to get to his destination…wherever that was. The glove that the witch or…whatever had left Soul contained a clue on the palm: "Your next destination bore many of this country's Presidents." Since the White House was located in DC, Soul assumed that was their meeting place. However, the police officer he asked informed Soul that the state he was most likely looking for was Virginia.

" _Where_ in Virginia?" Soul sighed.

"Uh," the officer scratched his head. "Well, Ferry Farm was George Washington's boyhood home. I suggest you start there."

"And how long will that take?"

The officer shrugged. "About an hour."

It was not an hour. It had been over two hours and they had only reached Spotsylvania. According to the bus driver, it would take another half an hour to reach Ferry Farm.

Soul groaned and fought off sleep by wondering how Blair was doing in his place.

X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x –X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X

Blair smiled at Kid on her way up to Shibusen. "Hey Kid! How are you?"

Kid's face paled and his eyes grew wide. Blair cocked her head in confusion before Kid jerked her to the side.  
"Blair!" he hissed. "What are you doing?"

She gasped. "How did you know it was me?"

"Because that's how you normally talk, you were smiling too much, you look perfectly symmetrical, and your teeth aren't pointy!"

"Oh shit." Blair put a hand over her mouth. "Well, thanks." She looked up at Kid. "Are you going to turn me in?"

Kid grimaced. "I probably should but…no. Soul knows what he's doing, and no attempt to stop him will do any good."

X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X – x – X

Soul stood on the soft, mushy ground, staring at the red clay. He was surrounded by churches and tour groups and people in reenactment uniforms. There was no part of this…historical site that did not look entirely crowded.

"Hey, psst, I'm over here." Soul turned to look, then growled in aggravation. The voice laughed. "Gets 'em every time. I need to speak to you in private…let's give them a distraction, yes?"

A canon in the distance went off. Several people screamed, a few laughed. Everyone but Soul left and headed toward the noise.

"So, you made it here! And it took you long enough."

"Can we just stop with the ridiculous mind benders and get this over with? I want my friend back."

"Oh, yesterday she was your partner, now she's your friend? I'd think you have feelings for her…"

Soul glared at…nothing. "Whatever. I'm not buying into this. What's your next clue?"

The voice sniffed at him, offended. "Well, you're no fun. Oh well, this is a boring state anyway. Who was the star of I Love Lucy?"

"What?"

"No, I don't believe that was her name."

"That wasn't my answer!"

"Too bad! I'll see you around."

"But where? Where do I go next?"

"Where the sun shines…except when it doesn't."

"What the hell kind of clue is that?"

"The only kind you're getting."


End file.
